Manchester City or United must pay £90m for Kalidou Koulibaly

Napoli will not cash in cheaply on star defender Kalidou Koulibaly as Manchester City, Manchester United and Paris Saint-Germain have told in no uncertain terms just how much he would set them back by owner Aurelio De Laurentiis.

 

De Laurentiis is a notorious stickler in the transfer market and often digs his heels in before selling players - it is no different with Koulibaly.

The 28-year-old, who turns 29 on Saturday, is enjoying another fine campaign at the heart of Napoli's defence and is being pursued by teams across England, Spain and France.

The coronavirus pandemic has caused chaos for football's finances but De Laurentiis is undeterred in revealing it will take a mammoth offer to prise Koulibaly away from Naples.

'If City,United or PSG with 100 million euros (£90m) showed up, I would think about it and it is probable that they would leave, always if their will was to leave,' De Laurentiis told Corriere dello Sport.

'I don't even consider an offer of 60 million euros (£55m). I am solid, if I wanted to win the Scudetto at any cost today I would find myself with three, four hundred million debts. I don't owe anyone sh*t.'

Koulibaly put in another commanding performance over the weekend as Napoli reached the Coppa Italia final following a second-leg draw with Inter Milan. They would face Juventus in the final.

What works in Napoli's favour is that the Senegalese is under contract in Naples until 2023, meaning De Laurentiis and his staff are under no pressure to cash in.

Having won Serie A's Best Defender award for the 2018-19 saeson, Koulibaly's stock has plummeted and with a number of teams looking to solidify their defence for 2020-21, he finds himself top of many manager's lists.

  

Napoli sporting director Cristiano Giuntoli added recently: 'Kalidou is a great player, who still has a long contract with us. If we were to sell, the club could ask for a large sum.

'A player like this cannot change his value even in a crisis, so we are not moving our valuation.'

Manchester United appear to be seeking a long-term partner for club captain Harry Maguire while for Pep Guardiola and Manchester City, they are still yet to properly replace Vincent Kompany.

An injury to Aymeric Laporte earlier this season exposed City's lack of depth at centre back with Fernandinho often slotting in.

Both John Stones and Nicolas Otamendi have shown frailties in a City shirt and Koulibaly would represent a significant upgrade for both clubs should they decide to meet De Laurentiis' demands.

                                                                                                                       #CITYZENS

                                                                                                                               Saif